Fake news most often describes inaccurate or false information spread online by either news services or via social media. However, the phrase is sometimes used in other ways such as to describe anything thought to be false, misleading or inaccurate online.
Questions you may have
Often fake news is shared as a social media post (like a tweet, post or comment) or in the style of a traditional news article. However, it can take many forms, including images and videos. Fake news is mostly understood to consist of hoaxes or deliberately false information. However it may also be used to describe satirical (a type of joke) content, clickbait, rumours, false content shared by accident or even adverts.
Some fake news is easy to spot – it might include spelling mistakes, be hosted on a suspicious site or have been shared by only a few people with no supporting evidence. Sometimes fake news can look very realistic and may have been spread widely or picked up by lots of different sites – in this case, the best way to spot it is look for the original source of the news, check for the story on reliable news services or use a fact checker.
Not always but it can be, especially if it begins to change how people think and behave. For example, fake information about vaccinations could lead to parents choosing not to vaccinate their children, which could mean they are more likely to get sick. Sometimes fake news can also encourage dangerous or harmful beliefs or actions, which could also hurt people if trusted and taken seriously. Thankfully there’s lots we can all do to prevent these kinds of problems.
Fact checking is something that anyone can do and involves looking at published information and verifying if it is accurate or not. With more people talking about and sharing fake news, there are now many official fact checking services available, where the public can search for a topic and find fact checked stories. In the UK you could use Full Fact, which is run by an independent charity who aim to expose and counter bad information.
Definitely not! One of the great things about the internet is that anyone can have a voice and people can share their experiences as they happen – this means we no longer need to rely on traditional news and media to keep us up-to-date with what’s happening in the world. However, it’s always worth bearing in mind that an unofficial news source like a post, photo or video is not guaranteed to be accurate. If you can, wait until you’ve been able to check the news from several sources and always question what you are seeing before taking it at face value.
Many social media services are now taking more responsibility for fake news that is shared by their users and are working hard to remove it where they can. If you see fake or inaccurate information being shared on social media, it’s worth reporting as it may be taken down. For more information on how to make a report on different services visit the ‘How to make a report’ page on our website.
This can be a difficult situation and will depend on your relationship with the person. If you feel comfortable doing so, you could message them and explain that what they’ve shared isn’t true. Try to be respectful and think about how you would feel if the roles were reversed – nobody likes to hear that they’re wrong! You could include a link to a fact checking website if you think it might help. Alternatively, you may be able to report their post – reporting on social media is anonymous, so they won’t know that it was you. The best option is to talk to an adult you know and trust, like a parent or carer who supports you at home, so that you can tackle the situation together.
Firstly, don’t worry – we’ve all made mistakes online and there’s some easy things you can do to fix this. Like anything you’ve shared but shouldn’t have, the first thing to do is delete your original post. You may also want to send a quick message to anyone who has interacted with it (liked, commented, etc). If you’re still concerned that people may have believed it or might share it on elsewhere, it could also be worth sharing a quick correction post. Try something like: “Woops! Realised my last post wasn’t entirely true…” and including a link to a reliable article on the same topic.
Top Tips
- Read beyond the headline – when scrolling or searching online, remember that you won’t always get the full story from a headline, title or photo.
- Look for the original source – whatever content you are looking at, try to work out who created it or where it came from originally.
- Question the things you see – Think about its purpose, whether it matches what you already know or if there are any clues it might be suspicious.
- Do further research – it’s always best to check multiple sources, like several websites, different videos or even offline in a book.
- Take action against fake news – use the report tool or speak up about fake or misleading content and never share it on without checking it’s true.
- Speak to an adult you know and trust for further help and support – this could be a parent, carer or whoever looks after you at home, a teacher or staff member at school, or somebody else.